Smashburger to the Strip and Bringing an Earl Too?

A day after rumors of Chick-fil-A's arrival in Las Vegas were dashed, talk is circulating of another much-loved chain finally arriving on the Strip.

Caesars Palace is spending an estimated $2,889,568 in construction costs to remodel the former Cypress Street Marketplace food court into the all new Forum Food Court. Tipsters have alerted Eater Vegas that Smashburger, Earl of Sandwich and a Caesars in-house created pizza joint will help fill out the 14,290-square-foot project. While that currently remains a rumor, Starbucks is already up and running as a major upgrade over the former Java Coast spot that sat on the corner of this food court.

This would mark Smashburger's ninth local operating destination and their first on the Strip. Their first casino location was inside the Fiesta Rancho. One year ago, Eater Vegas asked Smashburger founder and chief concept officer Tom Ryan about his local expansion plans:

Do you have any plans to open a location on the Strip?
If I did, I wouldn't talk to you about it. (Laughing) It would depend on where we are and it would depend on the circumstances. The best solutions come when they present themselves. We like to stay organic in our thinking on those fronts.

Ryan is currently working on his 24-hour diner Tom's Urban at New York-New York set to open in December.

The sandwich, soup and salad focused Earl of Sandwich already operates not far away at Caesars' own Planet Hollywood Resort.